On Monday’s broadcast of NewsNation’s “On Balance,” Brett Bruen, who served as Director of Global Engagement under President Barack Obama, stated that the humanitarian crisis in Gaza “comes down to Sisi not opening his borders so that Palestinians can take refuge, so that there can be an organized process of providing humanitarian aid.” And the Biden administration hasn’t adequately pushed the Arab world to do enough to provide humanitarian assistance and “restrain Hamas” because of “the negotiation tactics that the Biden administration uses, whether it’s on Venezuela, whether it’s on China, whether it’s on some of these other countries, where they seem to cede half of the territory before they’ve even begun to press them.”
Host Leland Vittert asked, “I’m wondering why there is not more pressure by the United States on the Arab world, particularly on Abdullah, on el-Sisi in Egypt, to force Hamas’ hand.”
Bruen responded, “Yeah, and I was going to particularly point out el-Sisi, because he holds the keys to the gates to Gaza. So, this whole humanitarian crisis that we have built up over several months and certainly what we’re currently facing in Rafah comes down to Sisi not opening his borders so that Palestinians can take refuge, so that there can be an organized process of providing humanitarian aid. And, yes, Israel needs to take every step imaginable to prevent civilian casualties, but el-Sisi, as well as the Jordanians, as well as the Emiratis and the Saudis, have to do more, one, to restrain Hamas, and two, to provide that kind of assistance.”
Vittert then asked, “So, why isn’t there pressure by the Biden administration publicly for that to happen?”
Bruen answered, “Well, because they’re trying to do this delicate diplomatic balancing act. They’ve tried to keep the Arab world from outright coming out against the United States, from breaking diplomatic ties with Israel. But at the same time, they’re not just getting enough from these Arab leaders, and that’s the problem. And I think it’s been — we’ve talked often about the negotiation tactics that the Biden administration uses, whether it’s on Venezuela, whether it’s on China, whether it’s on some of these other countries, where they seem to cede half of the territory before they’ve even begun to press them. And here, again, I think there is more that we can be asking of the Arab world.”
Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett
